Nerul residents blame CIDCO for shoddy work

Sadguru society in Nerul

Residents of the City and Industrial Development Corporation's (Cidco) housing society in Nerul's Sector 24 are now scared to stay in their own homes. They claim that though the building is not more than 15 years old, it has already developed cracks. Also, there have been two instances of slab collapses within a week.

Sadguru society in Nerul

A portion of a slab came crashing down in one of the flats of Sadguru society. The incident took place at around 1.30 am on Saturday, but fortunately nobody was injured in the incident. Kavita Kanse (32), the flat's owner, said, "After the incident I found it extremely difficult to sleep at night, fearing that another such accident might take place. Thankfully, no one was near the kitchen where the portion of the slab collapsed." Another resident claimed that a few days ago a portion of the slab had collapsed in the building's passage. No one was injured in the incident.

A portion of a slab came crashing down in one of the flats

Residents blame Cidco for the shoddy work. "This building has not even completed 15 years and it already looks dilapidated. Cidco is turning a blind eye to our complaints. On the contrary, it is blaming us for not taking proper care," alleged another resident.

Ramesh Devre, the society's secretary, said, "Now even the builders are not interested in developing these properties, as they demand an FSI of 3. But we have permission only for 2.5. Over the last two years, there have been numerous incidents of slab collapse. We have requested Cidco several times to look into the matter but nothing has been done till date."

Cidco officials stated that they have sent a proposal of 3 FSI for this building to the state urban development department. These structures fall under the jurisdiction of the Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation (NMMC) and not Cidco. There are 10 such buildings built by Cidco in the vicinity and each houses over 136 families.